TCI Magazine Audio Edition

Revisiting the Industrial Revolution  BY JOSEPH B. PIPITONE  For most of us, middle school is a good number of years in the rear-view mirror. But if we recall our lessons from those years, no doubt a few weeks of history class focused on the Industrial Revolution. It might be argued that the tree care industry today is going through its own form of Industrial Revolution, moving from climbing, sawi...

BY JEFF HEYBRUCK  Too often, we see businesses in equipment-intensive industries making purchases just to have shiny new equipment. Often, they purchase equipment before understanding the return on investment (ROI), i.e., how much money they will make using that item. A better plan is for tree-service companies to acquire new equipment with the goal of maximizing profit margins.  With this goal in...

By Josh Morin This past November, I enjoyed the opportunity of sharing some of my experiences with the Registered Arborist Apprenticeship program alongside August Hoppe at TCI EXPO ’22 in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was really energizing to share what we’ve learned so far with those who attended the talk.  We are now seeing a shift in our awareness and a shift in federal and state government sup...

Jeff Inman loves to climb. He is an ISA Certified Arborist, ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualified and is an ISA Tree Worker Climber Specialist. Inman is also risk manager with Truetimber Arborists Inc., and Truetimber Academy director. If that’s not enough, he is also the reigning North AmericanTree Climbing Champion.  Always curious, he wanted to know the answers to a few questions: Why do we climb?...

Seven Important Questions to Ask When Buying Climbing Gear, Part 1 Are you struggling to navigate the vast sea of equipment available online and in shops? Our three industry professionals understand the challenge and have created a two-part series with seven essential questions to ask yourself before making a purchase. Safety is a top priority, and with costs on the rise, it’s crucial to make info...

Student Career Day article in May 2023 issue by Susan DiPietro and Erin Demers Changes coming to Student Career Day at TCI EXPO ’23 in St. Louis, Missouri, November 16-18, are aimed at enhancing the experience for students and expanding opportunities for tree care companies to get in front of student participants. Partnership opportunities include more face time for tree care company representativ...

By David Anderson, CTSP Are you looking for good people? That’s a rhetorical question, obviously. Who isn’t? A great recruiting tool and, by extension, retention tool is to host an open house at your office. Remember to get your free subscription to TCI Magazine by clicking here .

Raising Professionalism with Arborist Apprenticeship By August Hoppe The Registered Arborist Apprenticeship program is a formal training program registered with a state labor department or the federal Department of Labor. The program can be used as a tool to help recruit, train, and retain employees while building a level of professionalism in the arboriculture industry.  Remember to get your free...

Heartwood and Heart Rot Part 1 Are they Important to Arborists  BY KEVIN T. SMITH, PH.D., CHRISTOPHER J. LULEY, PH.D., AND TOM DRAVES  Tree care professionals frequently assess or estimate the strength of wood within a living tree or standing snag. This is often quite informal, with training and experience that guides decisions to remove or retain a major stem, or where to tie off lines and place...

Creating Inclusive Work Environments at Tree Care Companies Are you looking to create an inclusive work culture that drives performance, improves safety and increases profitability? Start by becoming an ally and actively using your power and privilege to achieve equity and inclusion for others. In our industry, most things come down to time, training, support and, of course, the ever-changing vari...

The Obvious “Next Step” to Success for ArborTech Courtney and Audra Kelly were born and raised in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. This also is where they put down roots, started a family and decided to establish a tree-service business. At Audra’s urging to “take a chance,” the couple began their company, ArborTech, in October 2008 in Gilmanton, New Hampshire.   Remember to get your free subscr...

How Defects Increase the Likelihood of Tree Failure  As an arborist, you probably have a good idea of what defects to watch out for – decay, weak unions, cracks, cut roots. Yet it’s less clear how severe a particular defect must be to reduce load-bearing capacity enough that failure is more likely. More than just how much decay is present, the location of decay is equally important. Remember to ge...

In this Outlook column, Josh Morin discusses the importance of relationships. He states "In some ways, working as a sales arborist is being a professional “needs-meeter” in the world of people and trees. Being clear on how we can show up to meet the needs of others while fulfilling the needs of our organization can make for a thriving business, satisfied clients and happy trees."     Rem...

Judging the validity of the TIP pull test by Jim Kasper May 2023 Climbing arborists use various techniques to assess tree stability and ensure safety. A pull test is used to determine the structural integrity of the tree at the tie-in-point (TIP). By applying a concentrated load to a specific point on a tree, climbers can determine its structural integrity. ANSI standards even prescribe pre-testin...

 Protos Integral Helmet review article Andy Jones May 23 Since its launch in 2012, the Pfanner Protos Integral Helmet has been building a reputation as one of the premier personal protective equipment (PPE) items in the world of industrial safety. The “integral” refers to its integrated ear, face and neck protection, with a chin strap and rear ventilation between the inner and outer shell. In Apri...

The field of probability plays a role in just about everything tree workers do. If you knew that the odds of being severely injured performing a specific task were one in five, you might approach it with greater caution – or avoid it altogether – than if the odds were one in one million. Tree workers are slightly less than 0.05% of the U.S. workforce, but may account for about 1.4% of the work-rel...

In August 2021, the author and his team conducted an aerial-rescue demonstration at an annual redwoods recreational climb in Crescent City, California. They were getting ready for an evening of socializing at their campsite when they were asked by a local sheriff to assist in the real-life rescue of an injured kayaker in a remote section of river. Without hesitation, the arborists jumped into acti...

Head protection is one of the required pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) for tree workers in the ANSI Z133 -2017 Safety Requirements for Arboricultural Operations. They can protect against impact from falling or swinging objects and electrical hazards. The helmet, like most PPE, is your last protection from injury.  But helmets provide a measure of protection that is not absolute. Unde...

During TCI EXPO last fall, and in subsequent discussions, compact- or tracked-lift distributors expressed frustration with lift owners and operators who don’t do regular maintenance on their equipment, even for safety-related functions. We asked lift distributors how broad a problem this is and what, if anything, they can do about it.  Remember to get your free subscription to TCI Magazine by clic...

 Having your insurance with a standard-line carrier is vitally important. Having an agent, or agency, who understands your operation is just as crucial. If you are an active member of a state or national association, such as TCIA or ISA, reach out to them for possible recommendations or a list of agents who have in-depth knowledge of the industry and are willing to assist you with loss-control ide...

Regardless of the hazards, tree workers are essential members of emergency response teams during critical snow events, such as those recently experienced in the mountain communities of El Dorado County, which is part of the Northern Sierras in California. Snow-drift levels rose as high as the communication lines on some line segments. Power lines downed by falling trees necessitated the need for t...

Ryan Ealy, CTSP, has been a utility consultant for several large U.S. companies. As such, he has found becoming a TCIA Qualified Trainer – one of the first to do so – and using TCIA’s online Electrical Hazards Awareness Program (EHAP) training course a good match for both safety training and tree workers’ schedules. “TCIA seems to be taking the training in the direction where people can learn at t...

A captivation with big trees inspired Howard Gaffin to celebrate the year of America’s bicentennial by hitchhiking cross-country to the Pacific Northwest. He had somehow pre-arranged lodging and employment at the esteemed John Flinks potato farm in Monteseno, Washington. After a season of spud farming and getting a feel for his surroundings, he eventually made my way north on Route 101, from Aberd...

Every once in a while, you have the opportunity to meet someone you have long admired. For whatever reason, these meetings often are disappointing. But not always. I recently had the opportunity to meet Dave “Niceguydave” Stice at TCI EXPO ’22, and, fortunately, Stice was not at all disappointing.  Remember to get your free subscription to TCI Magazine by clicking here .

 As a business owner, you understand the importance of growth. Without it, your business may struggle to survive in a competitive marketplace. But with so many different strategies and approaches, it can be difficult to know where to start. There are a number of myths and mistakes that can prevent you from achieving the growth you desire. In this podcast, we’ll discuss some of the most common myth...